The Arrangement Review

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            The Arrangement

Review by TogerJuly 2004

“All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players.” —William Shakespeare

Let’s set our stage, shall we? Annie and Richard Sullivan have been happily married for five years and are making plans to spend an anniversary weekend together. Richard receives a phone call from someone identifying himself as Fortrey who claims that Annie has willingly left Richard for him. Fortrey gives Richard one adventure game-type hour in which to locate Annie to see her “one last time.” Thus begins the story of The Arrangement, the newest enterprise of independent developer Michael B.  Clark.

The Arrangement’s story is a dark, twisted tale that eventually spirals into madness. As you progress through the game, you’ll glean more and more tidbits with regard to Fortrey’s mad scheme and Annie’s possible duplicity. Like most B-grade movies, there were some good-sized plot holes, but if the story intrigues me—such as this one did—then I’ll definitely overlook those holes.

Gameplay is standard first-person point-and-click through node-based environments. The player takes on the role of Richard Sullivan in his desperate search for Annie. You’ll find no degree of panning in any of the cardinal directions. Although there are a couple of instances where you’re presented with a diagonal direction for inspection, most objects that you’d normally reach that way will require a bit of fancy footwork to get to them.

As with most adventure games, you’ll spend your time pawing through other people’s belongings, taking whatever isn’t nailed to the floor and, of course, puzzling out a vast array of conundrums.  The Arrangement’s puzzles range from simply answering trivia questions to deciphering a cryptogram. (I have to take issue with the answers to the mathematical trivia questions as the answers listed in no way adhere to what I was taught in Algebra.)

Other puzzles include color matching à la Simon, a concentration-type memory game and recreating several floor plans on a machine. None of the puzzles were too mind-boggling; however, I did run into a problem with the stone wall puzzle in that it wouldn’t work with my logic. Taking a peek at the walkthrough, I discovered that my logic and the developer’s were at odds in that it wouldn’t have occurred to me to manipulate the stone ball in the manner stated in the walkthrough. Oh well.

Like Harvest, Clark’s first game, The Arrangement is fairly linear, but you are able to jump to any location once it’s opened up.  Unlike the first game, there are no mazes or intricate pictures that require reconstruction. (Thank you.)

One of the more clever nods to adventure gaming in general is the Red Herring machine. You can actually place found objects in the machine, and it will let you know if it’s just there to burden you with extraneous inventory or if the object is really needed. Anything that isn’t required is instantly pulverized by the machine!

By the way … can I have a show of hands from all the arachnophobes in our audience? Just a small warning—there’s a strong spider theme that runs throughout this game. At one point, there’s a glass display case full of tarantulas in which it’s necessary to actually touch the case in order to move forward in the game. Do you know how tough it is to operate a game with your eyes closed? (Shall I relate the story of how I almost jumped out of a moving car to avoid an itsy-bitsy spider? No, never mind.  We’ll speak no more of this.)

Visually, The Arrangement is something of a hodgepodge.  The backgrounds are prerendered CGI and, for the most part, quite pretty. Some objects have a warm, almost lifelike, aura to them, while others have such a flat look it’s obvious that it isn’t real. Character models are … interesting. Remember Appalachian apple-head dolls? Several of the characters have that exact desiccated-fruit look. Others reminded me of marionettes the way their eyes rolled around in their faces or their jaws seemed to unhinge while speaking.  One reminded me of the two old men who sat in the theater box on The Muppet Show.

The Arrangement’s musical score is beautiful. The composer, Christopher Brendel, is to be applauded for creating a score that was at times both haunting and tension-inducing. As events unfolded, the music changes dramatically to heighten the player’s apprehension.

There aren’t a lot of ambient sounds in the game; there are the standard clocks ticking, doors and drawers opening and closing.  Oddly enough, you never hear your character’s footsteps as he moves from place to place.

Voice work was hot and cold. The main female character—Annie—sounded so lethargic that I was sure she’d imbibed one too many Valium tablets to get herself through the ordeal. She didn’t really seem to wake up until the final scene. Alas, the supporting players were no better.

On the flip side, John Bell—who voiced Fortrey and several other male voices—was dead on the money. From the moment we meet Fortrey, we know he’s a picnic shy of a sandwich … and not in the “good” way of … say … having Harvey the six-foot invisible rabbit as an acquaintance. We’re talking dangerous-don’t-look-him-directly-in-the-eyes-move-to-the-other-side-of-the-street madness.

In the end, The Arrangement turns out to be a nice little middle-of-the-road change of pace—neither incredibly horrible nor the best invention since sliced bread. I can forgive the odd, sometimes creepy-looking, representation of humans and to a certain extent the bad voice-acting; but where it really fell apart for me was the finale. While I liked the perverse nature of the story; I felt that the ending was akin to blasting a hole in the wall after you’ve inadvertently painted yourself into a corner. Sure, you’ll get out of the situation, but it’s neither the cleanest nor the most satisfying of exits. The End

The Verdict

The Lowdown

Developer: Michael B. Clark Publisher: Michael B. Clark Release Date: June 2004

Available for: Windows

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System Requirements

Not specified; should run well on low-end systems

Where to Find It

Michael B. Clark 14.95 (includes shipping)

Prices/links current as of 7/6/04Links provided for informational purposes only.  FFC makes no warranty with regard to any transaction entered into by any party(ies).

      Copyright © Electric Eye Productions.  All rights reserved.  No reproduction in whole or in part without express written permission.

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14 Responses to Fear Factor

  • Fear Factor | Tap-Repeatedly.com | Reality Topics Blog

    […] nobody@flickr.com (graftedno1) wrote a very interesting post today.   Here’s a quick excerpt:My greatest fear is to be trapped alone in a confined space with a blind human, in total darkness. They have a heightened sense of smell and hearing, and. […]

  • Matt "Steerpike" Sakey

    Lewis, you made me think of the scariest moments I’ve experienced in gaming, and we’re very similar people.

    Bioshock had two moments – the dentist and the flooded room filled with mannequins.

    Thief had Return to the Cathedral, which was terrifying to me. Thief 3 had Shalebridge Cradle, which is so scary it ought to be fined.

    System Shock 2 kept me on the edge of my seat, but it was more lonely panic than true fear.

    Korsakovia was so scary that I uninstalled it.

    And STALKER. Oh, god, the haunted labs in STALKER. The latter two games don’t have scares like that. Few games do.

    It’s especially rare for a game to have more than mere “moments” – for a game to be scary from beginning to end, that’s a triumph.

    Wonderful article. As if Gregg’s review wasn’t enough to convince me that Penumbra is not something I have the courage to play!

  • DPenn

    I’m with you Lewis … I’m a bit of a puss. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of dread as entertainment.

    Still, I’m drawn to dark stories when they have something interesting to say, whether it’s a game like Thief or a film like, say, Gaspar Noe’s Irreversible. So I’ll push through, sometimes peering through my fingers.

    The trouble with games, though, is that if you look through your fingers, you’re probably just going to have to play through the scenario again. :~)

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    I wanted to play this game. I downloaded the demo but the controls were just too wonky for me to get my head around. I liked the atmospheric vibe a lot. I think I’m a bit desensitized from an overdose of horror movies in my youth so I don’t so much get the dread thing from these games as a nice creepy vibration. If only the controls were better…

  • Lewis B

    @ Mike, what’s wrong with the controls bud? As someone who despises poor control schemes, Penumbra’s is just like any other FPS, except to examine things you right click on them.  To use things you left click.  I’m not sure that can be considered difficult 🙂

  • Gregg B

    @Steerpike: Yeah my greatest shit-scared moments were with those games too. A few spoilers below people, so beware.

    Bioshock – Haha, I remember the dentist. I didn’t really find the game that scary overall but the bit where you go into the wine cellar and notice a mannequin facing the wall and after upgrading your weapon it’s stood directly behind you motionless and quiet just for a moment before attacking you. I shat a brick. I also missed that bit originally until Lew told me about it.

    System Shock 2 – same as you really, more unremitting tension all the way through rather than specific terrifying moments. Oh actually, theres a bit where you call a lift and it breaks then you realise a service droid is coming to fix it… I do remember having sleep issues after my first encounter with the cyborg ninjas though.

    Thief: The Dark Project – The Sword and Return to the Cathedral and Down in the Bonehoard and well, loads of them. The Sword made me break out into goosebumps though because there was a bit where you could hear this creepy giggling which seemed like it was following me about then it suddenly changed to this horrible throaty noise. What made matters worse was that the EAX (bless you Creative) made my foot steps sound like somebody else was there with me. That level was incredible, a bit too incredible as it seems I missed great chunks of it because I was so eager to leave.

    Thief II: The Metal Age – Trail of Blood where you end up in that opening with those damn tree beasts. God the first time I saw one of those hurtling towards me I actually died shortly afterward. Do you remember that Mechanist child walking around on one of the levels? That was a little creepy.

    Then there’s Penumbra: Overture – quite a few bits but I’m not mentioning them here.

    Oh and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – The brain scorcher lab just because it was so damn quiet. My imagination seriously got the better of me there. Those stuffed animals and heads I’d seen in various buildings led me to believe that those creatures were lurking somewhere in the Zone, specifically that lab.

    @Mike: My control setup was perfect after some tweaking (as well as the simple weapon swing fix). If you ever fancy giving it another go, give me a shout and I’ll let you know my setup.

  • Lewis B

    I’m not sure why guys, but one of my starting paragraphs had gone missing, even though I copied it straight from the original source, and It was fine earlier. 

    Incase you missed it due to some technical issue you might want to re-read just after “Well no she wouldn’t in truth, but in Penumbra: Overture you don’t want to move anyway.” at the very start for those who’ve already read the article. Apologies 🙂

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    Lewis, it was the weapon swing. It had this terrible, unresponsive feel to it, like trying to hit through molasses. I couldn’t stand using it. I tried the .ini fix as mentioned in the review but it didn’t seem to help. Of course this was the demo…but that shouldn’t have made any difference. I might try the second game instead as I guess they did away with the weapons thing.

    I’m see your first paragraph just fine. It’s the dialogue, right?

  • jdeuel

    I like the argument that weapons can remove fear, but even loaded to the teeth with ammo in AVP’99 the Marine missions were frightful because the enemy was anywhere at any time.

    As for Penumbra Overture, if the controls are anything like the original Penumbra they need to hack in some Wii-Remote 3d controls. I did not like using my mouse for 3d movements.

  • Gregg B

    @Mike: I’ve read that many people avoided conflict altogether in Overture which incidentally is something forced upon you in Black Plague. As somebody who has been renovating a house over the last 6 months with no DIY experience I can safely say that swinging a hammer is significantly easier in real life than it is in Overture without the fix. The fix balanced that for me.

    I’d highly recommend completing the first Penumbra because it’s one big build up to Black Plague which spoils the ending to Overture in the intro. And it’s a great ending too. Just so you know!

  • Lewis B

    @ Steerpike, those moments you mention are all my worst too!!  Do you remember the Robot labs in SS2? Absolutely terrifying, waiting for robots to burst out on you! 🙁 oh and have you ever player Condemned?

    @ Mike, The use of weapons in Penumbra is different to say HL2, where the player is physically holding the weapon, as in Penumbra it floats slightly infront of you.  However, if you change the control method to normal weapon swing, it’s no different!  Speak to Greggi and he’ll tell you what to do 🙂

    @ jdeuel, AVP the original and its sequal were scary however what type of fear do you think it is? I don’t think it’s anything more than sheer tension.  Having a Smart Gun makes you feel incredibly powerful.  I can honestly say in Penumbra the fear is sheer unrivalled terror, where you actually have to force yourself to play on.  It genuinly is that scary! 🙂

  • Jason Dobry

    It’s so true, an arsenal of weapons and ammo rapidly deflates any sense of horror or uneasiness in any game for reasons you already mentioned. Sakey, I thought Bioshock was more “lonely panic,” while I was pretty much always terrified in System Shock 2. I really, really, REALLY did not want to enter The Many’s nursery, and my weapons were so unreliable and ammo so scarce that I never felt safe.

    Silent Hill was terrifying for the same reasons. Ammo was rare and I frequently had to rely on my pipe for self-defense.  Even when I had ammo, the game mechanics prevented my character from being anything other than marginal with any firearm.

    Fear had one moment for me: I was climbing up a ladder, and as I reached the upper platform, my guy briefly looked down as he climbed off. As my perspective looked up again, that Ring-esque little girl was RIGHT THERE, reaching for me. I screamed and she was gone.

    What else…the original Aliens vs. Predator sent me into a locker room and I could only hear the facehuggers scurrying about somewhere within. I had to go in there. I advanced about three steps before the damn thing screamed and filled up my screen with its repulsive underside as it implanted me with its spawn. My roommate made fun of me for weeks for screaming like a girl child.

    Korsakovia–meh.  I was too annoyed and frustrated by the box rearrangement/jumping puzzles to be scared. I uninstalled it after an hour of play, I think. Maybe the scary parts were later, but I doubt it.

    As for Penumbra, I did play through about half of it before other games distracted me. I remember unease and creepiness, but no sweaty fear. I think I’m to blame here, or, more precisely, my daughter, who was still an infant at the time and generally allowed me only to play during the day for 45 minutes at a time. I was denied total immersion and the fear effect suffered. Maybe I should give it another go after I finish Call of Pripyat since she sleeps through the night now. With any luck, Penumbra will keep me from doing the same.

  • Gregg B

    I played the demo of F.E.A.R. but that ladder scare is the only bit I remember. Christ, that made me jump. I’m not too good with cat scares.

    Also I felt exactly the same about Korsakovia. It was creepy at first but then it began to irritate me far too much and it just soured the experience. I stopped playing as a result. Not to mention, when I realised I could bash those smoke-things with my crowbar they didn’t bother me nearly as much.

  • Online Up

    Great article. I look forward to reading more in the future.

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